Her Silent Cry

Fourteen

“Please,” she told the man. “We need heat. It’s too cold in here for a child.”

“Shut up,” the man said. “All you do is complain.”

“An extra blanket then. Please.”

From under the door, I heard the sound of a slap and then the yelp that issued from her throat. I braced myself to hear him hit her again, but the next sound was her footsteps shuffling toward the door. I scurried back, hopping onto the bed as she flew into the room. In the moonlight streaming through the window, I saw a small trickle of blood at the corner of her mouth. She wiped it off with the back of her hand. “Under the covers,” she instructed.

I crawled beneath the threadbare blanket we had to share, and she got in beside me. She held me close to her body and soon, her warmth radiated against my skin. “I’m sorry,” she said.

I didn’t say anything. She looped an arm around my chest, pulling me closer to her. She whispered into my ear. “Someday we’re going to leave here. I promise you.”

“Where will we go?” I asked as quietly as I could.

“I don’t know,” she said. “Home.”

I turned my head until her breath was on my cheek. “Home?”

“Yes,” she said. “Where it’s always warm and there’s plenty to eat. All the toys you could possibly play with, and friends. Lots of friends.”

“Do we have to bring him?”

“No. We won’t ever see him again.”

“You’ll stay with me forever?”

She planted a kiss on top of my head. “Forever. We’ll never be cold or hurt again.”

“I want to go now,” I said.

“Not yet,” she whispered.